In an effort to put together excelent teaching in regards to the fact that as a born again Christian we are no longer under the law and sin I decided to create this blog. So many times I am in need to either refresh my own mind to the fact that I am no longer a sinner and why as well as being able to share so with others and have this information at my fingertips. Thank you to Daniel at http://saintsnotsinners.org/how-to-overcome-sin/ and Charles G. Finney's article I could not have done a better job at making this so very clear beyond a shadow of doubt.
I recently followed both these articles and want to add that repenting actually means changing ones mind and does not mean, as many organizations / pulpits/ teachings proclaim a requirement to actually gain a closeness with God. Another great article on this is here: http://www.hitland.net/07-article-repent-meaning.htm which is an article on the biblical meaning of repentance.
Another great site with a wealth of information on these and other issues is here:
http://www.revivalorriots.org/faqsresources
Some of the best quotes in either of these articles are as follows:
If you think you’re a sinner, you will be stuck in your sin, because you believe it’s who you are and it’s your nature to sin. If you know you’re holy, you will be stuck in holiness because you will know that sinning is contrary to who you are. Does that mean you will lose your ability to sin? No. Adam sinned without a sin nature, so can we. But the more wrapped up we are in who we are, the less likely we are to do things that are contrary to our character. But that goes both ways:
...
The more wrapped up I am in how much of a sinner I think I am, the less likely I am to do things that are holy.
...
The more wrapped up I am in how holy I know I am, the less likely I am to do things that are sinful.
...
With a sin nature I have to try not to sin.
...
With a holy nature I have to try to sin, because sin now becomes a choice, as opposed to being prone to it.
...
Many Christians still think they have evil desires when they don’t. It doesn’t mean you can’t think bad things on your own or that every bad thought is a devil, you still have to manage your thoughts and take every thought captive.
...
You are not a sinner who is prone to sin, you are a saint who is prone to righteousness, because righteousness is who you are, and the you that was prone to sin is dead (Romans 6:2, Romans 6:7, Romans 6:10-11, Galatians 5:24, Colossians 2:11). The reason you cannot be a sinner, even if you sin, is because who you are is no longer based on what you do, who you are is based on what He’s done. Remember: You are dead! It’s no longer you who live, but Christ who lives in you. If you believe that, but also believe you are a sinner, you believe Christ is a sinner because He is the one living in you and through you. We are not God’s righteousness because we did something for it, we are God’s righteousness because He did something for it and we chose to receive.
...
But only by renewing your mind and changing the way you think. If you are struggling with sin, change the way you think. Renew your mind. That simply means to bring your mind into a new covenant way of thinking about things. That you are not the victim of sin, but the overcomer of it through Jesus’ finished work. That is how you will be transformed and begin living it out.
...
From Charles Finney:But surely this is no Christian state, for the apostle has distinctly said: "Sin shall not have dominion over you, because ye are not under the law, but under grace."
...
In a word, much of the teaching, both of the pulpit and the press, really amounts to this: Sanctification is by works, and not by faith.
...
This, it will be perceived, is directing the attention to the overt act of sin, its source or occasions. Resolving and fighting against it fastens the attention on the sin and its source, and diverts it entirely from Christ.
...
All such efforts to overcome sin are utterly futile, and as unscriptural as they are futile. The Bible expressly teaches us that sin is overcome by faith in Christ. "He is made unto us wisdom, righteousness, sanctification, and redemption." "He is the way, the truth, and the life." Christians are said to "purify their hearts by faith" --(Acts xv, 9). And in Acts xxvi, 18 it is affirmed that the saints are sanctified by faith in Christ. In Romans ix, 31,32 it is affirmed that the Jews attained not to righteousness "because they sought it not by faith, but as it were by the works of the law." The doctrine of the Bible is that Christ saves His people from sin through faith; that Christ's Spirit is received by faith to dwell in the heart. It is faith that works by love. Love is wrought and sustained by faith. By faith Christians "overcome the world, the flesh, and the Devil." It is by faith that they "quench the fiery darts of the wicked." It is by faith that they "put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and put off the old man, with his deeds." It is by faith that we fight "the good fight," and not by resolution. It is by faith that we "stand," by resolution we fall. This is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith. It is by faith that the flesh is kept under and carnal desires subdued. The fact is that it is simply by faith that we receive the Spirit of Christ to work in us, to will and to do, according to his good pleasure. He sheds abroad his own love in our hearts, and thereby enkindles ours. Every victory over sin is by faith in Christ; and whenever the mind is diverted from Christ, by resolving and fighting against sin, whether we are aware of it or not, we are acting in our own strength, rejecting the help of Christ, and are under a specious delusion. Nothing but the life and energy of the Spirit of Christ within us can save us from sin, and trust is the uniform and universal condition of the working of this saving energy within us. How long shall this fact be at least practically overlooked by the teachers of religion? How deeply rooted in the heart of man is self-righteousness and self-dependence? So deeply that one of the hardest lessons for the human heart to learn is to renounce self-dependence and trust wholly in Christ. When we open the door by implicit trust he enters in and takes up his abode with us and in us. By shedding abroad his love he quickens our whole souls into sympathy with himself, and in this way, and in this way alone, he purifies our hearts through faith. He sustains our will in the attitude of devotion. He quickens and regulates our affections, desires, appetites and passions, and becomes our sanctification. Very much of the teaching that we hear in prayer and conference meetings, from the pulpit and the press, is so misleading as to render the hearing or reading of such instruction almost too painful to be endured. Such instruction is calculated to beget delusion, discouragement, and a practical rejection of Christ as he is presented in the Gospel.
...
My note: As I venture to cement this truth into my own heart I may occassional add more information below. Be blessed,
Berni
